Terry Jermy MP, Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk, attended the Back British Farming Day Reception to celebrate the food and farming sector in his constituency and across the country.
Jermy recently visited Grange Farm in his constituency to also show his support, meeting Tim Young, Director of G’s Growers, to highlight the uncertainty facing British horticulture following the Government’s decision not to renew or replace the Fruit and Vegetable Aid Scheme (FVAS).
Producer Organisations (POs) such as G’s Growers Cooperative received vital funding from the scheme, allowing collaboration, investment, and resilience in the fresh produce sector. With no replacement scheme announced, the future of the sector is now at risk, leaving the sector facing significant uncertainty and major job losses.
Jermy also wrote to the new Minister of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Dame Angela Eagle DBE to highlight the issue as well.
The scheme, which secured home-grown British produce for decades, will come to an end in England and Wales later this year. While support continues in Scotland and Northern Ireland, growers here are left at a serious disadvantage.
Terry Jermy MP, said:
“Today is the ideal day to be backing our farmers. As a government, we will not abandon British growers they will be at the very heart of the economic growth. After 14 years of Conservative mismanagement, Labour is securing jobs, strengthening supply chains, and protecting Britain’s food security. But this scheme is vital to the fruit and veg sector, and a re-think or a replacement must happen.
“The Government must produce a new scheme to support our British growers and support out British food security. Without a scheme such has FVAS, it risks fewer British vegetables on our shelves, greater reliance on imports, and the loss of skilled jobs. I am urging ministers to act now and put a proper replacement in place before it is too late.”
Tim Young, Director of G’s Growers, added:
“Producer Organisations have delivered real results – improving efficiency, boosting investment, and helping Britain grow more of its own food. Ending support with nothing in its place threatens years of progress and leaves growers exposed to unfair EU competition. Without urgent action, we face a damaging increase in imports and weakened food security.”
The visit was supported by the UK Fruit and Vegetable Association (UKFVA), which has warned that the loss of support could undermine nearly £3 billion of value already delivered through POs, and risks reversing progress in domestic fruit and vegetable production.
UKFVA spokesman Patrick Bastow said:
“This is not just a farming issue – it is about the nation’s food supply. Producer Organisations are efficient, collaborative, and proven to work. We urge the government to rethink its position.”
